This disclosure generally relates to optical fibers and, more particularly, to cleaning and sealing optical fiber connectors.
Optical fibers are useful in a wide variety of applications, including the telecommunications industry for voice, video, and data transmissions. In a telecommunications system that uses optical fibers, there are typically many locations where fiber optic cables that carry the optical fibers connect to equipment or other fiber optic cables. To conveniently provide these connections, fiber optic connectors are often provided on the ends of fiber optic cables. The process of terminating individual optical fibers from a fiber optic cable is referred to as “connectorization.” Connectorization can be done in a factory, resulting in a “pre-connectorized” or “pre-terminated” fiber optic cable, or in the field (e.g., using a “field-installable” fiber optic connector).
Regardless of where installation occurs, a fiber optic connector typically includes a ferrule with one or more bores that receive one or more optical fibers. The ferrule supports and positions the optical fiber(s) with respect to a housing of the fiber optic connector. Thus, when the housing of the fiber optic connector is mated with another fiber optic connector or adapter, an optical fiber in the ferrule is positioned in a known, substantially fixed location relative to the housing. This allows an optical communication to be established when the optical fiber is aligned with another optical fiber provided in the mating component (the other fiber optic connector or adapter).
Dust caps are typically applied to fiber optic connectors in the manufacturer's factory to protect the precision mating surfaces from damage and contamination between the time that the connector leaves the manufacturing line and is in the hands of the installer. In some situations, dust caps may address physical damage protection more so than the contamination protection. As a result, contaminated connectors may be delivered to the installation point, and a field cleaning process may be required prior to installation.